In 1198, King Henry II of England invaded Ireland and gave the part of it he controlled to his son John as a Lordship when John was just 10 in 1177. When John succeeded to the English throne in 1199, he remained Lord of Ireland thereby bringing the kingdom of England and the lordship of Ireland into personal union. Successive Kings of England also had the title of Lord of Ireland until the title was abolished by Henry VIII, who was made King of Ireland by the Parliament of Ireland by the Crown of Ireland Act 1542.

Edward IV was the King of England from 4 March 1461 until 3 October 1470, and again from 11 April 1471 until his death in 1483. He was the first Yorkist King of England.

The first half of his rule was marred by the violence associated with the Wars of the Roses, but he overcame the Lancastrian challenge to the throne at Tewkesbury in 1471 to reign in peace until his sudden death. Before becoming king, he was 4th Duke of York, 7th Earl of March, 5th Earl of Cambridge and 9th Earl of Ulster. He was also the 65th Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece.

The Royal style of Edward IV was "Rex Angliae et Franciae et Dominus Hiberniae" (King of England and of France and Lord of Ireland).